Just purchased my new Petrol PMH-1 LCD 2.5 monitor sunshade by Petrol for under 20 bucks. This is a well made shade that even has a plastic hood. This fits both the LCD screen on my VX2000 and JVC GY DV5000. This is NO gimmick. Really works outside or in a bright enviroment! Lou Bruno

I just bought one too. I am amazed. Cost me something like 19 bucks including tax. What are these people thinking? Don't they know this will go on a video camera?

The sunshade is well constructed and designed. Every PD150/VX2000 owner should buy one quickly before Petrol comes to their senses and starts charging $80/shade instead of $20.

For anyone wondering what they're talking about, you can see it here. (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/product/264606/PEPMH1/REG/4968)

LCD screens are great, in theory, but as soon as you take one outdoors they are almost useless. In bright light you just can't see anything on the screen. One small lcd screen I bought for my old VX1000 came with a crummy plastic hood that was very difficult to put together and harder to actually use. It was junk.

The Petrol hood is for real. It is made of a stiff synthetic canvas. Unfolded it lays flat. Folded it is fairly rigid and is held onto the lcd screen by elastic straps. It is about 3" deep all around and has a plastic hood that extends another 4" or so on the top and part of the sides. It is nicely made and it works. Amazing.

Any opinions on the Hoodman? I'm thinking about buying one real soon. I had never heard of the Petrol hood before till now. What was supposed to be an easy decision has now become a choice between these two.

www.hoodmanusa.com

I've got a Hoodman. Works well. I like it.

I've just ordered a Hoodman with the H-300 Magnifier that attaches to it(not listed on the Hoodman website as yet). H-300 Magnifier is an extra $19.95.
Great thing for me was that postage on the Hoodman and Magnifier was only $7 to New Zealand. . . . .the Petrol on the B&H website had a postage(air parcel post) cost to NZ of $27.00!

Mark Sudfelt

Mark,
Where did you order your Hoodman from?

I think Hoodman products can only be ordered direct. I own several hoods from Hoodman and they are great. One of them is 4 years old and still looks and works like new. But of course there is not much to wear out on a hood.

<<<-- Originally posted by Jeff Donald : I think Hoodman products can only be ordered direct.-->>>

I believe that's incorrect. On the Hoodman website, it has a link for Find a Dealer. In addition, I already inquired with Zotz, one of the board's sponsors. They carry the Hoodman, but I don't think that they carry the newer model with a magnifier. That's why I was asking where Mark got his because I would prefer one with a magnifier.

I ordered direct from Hoodman recently, off their web site.

One thing about both the Hoodman and the Petrol design: they will help in keeping ambient light from striking the screen but they will not eliminate reflections onto the screen. By this I mean that you end up staring at a reflection of yourself peering into the screen, or if you have the screen tipped up into the sky there will be an overall washout particularly on an overcast day.

The real deal is a diagonally shaped hood which reflects black material onto the face of the screen. This is the design for the larger Hoodman shades but unfortunately they have opted out of this for their smaller models. I wrote to them to investigate the possibility of a custom run of the 3" shades in this format but they couldn't do it for under 100 units.

Ordered Hoodman directley from Hoodmanusa.

The Hoodman is a different design than my Petrol.
Go to www.alartvideo.comn He should be getting a new website shortly or call Artie.

Anyone had their hands on the Century Optics LCD magnifier?

Bigger pictures here
http://www.petrolbags.com/cgi-bin/petrolbags/Petrol_Hoods.html?id=wXPMiErZ#PMH-1